Sherkin Island Marine Station was founded in 1975 by Matt Murphy and his late wife Eileen on the northwest side of Sherkin Island, County Cork, Ireland. Matt and his family ran the station until 2015, when project work came to an end. Following Matt’s death in March 2025, his family continues to work on creating an archive of the data collected over the station’s four decades of operation.
ITS AIMS:
- To establish baseline data on the marine life along the coastline from Cork Harbour to Bantry Bay and to record natural changes in plant and animal communities.
- To raise the level of awareness of the marine environment in Ireland and the potential of the sea to create jobs.
- To help introduce young people to nature via Sherkin Comment and through educational programmes.
The marine station was staffed by volunteer scientists who came to the Station and normally volunteered from April to November. They received full board and a small allowance.
Sherkin Island Marine Station undertook long-term monitoring surveys and projects which include the rocky shore, plankton, otters, birds, underwater, macrofauna, rockpools, insects and plants. It is recognised as having established the longest monitoring programme and most extensive database on phytoplankton in Ireland. Sherkin Island Marine Station received no State aid for its research. In many ways this was its strength. It could decide on any research which it believed was necessary. There was no outside influence on the Station since it was founded in 1975. The Station looked for advice on scientific matters from scientists worldwide, many of whom had been to Sherkin.
Sherkin Island Marine Station organised the major environmental conference in Ireland every April/May. Since 1975 the Station organised 40 conferences and workshops on the mainland and the island.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME
For seven years, Audrey Murphy, Matt Murphy’s youngest child, visited primary schools to deliver talks on the environment and marine life. Her presentations featured slideshows of sea creatures found in Irish waters, designed to give children a glimpse beneath the waves and inspire deeper interest in the ocean.
Alongside creating an archive of data, the Station produced over 60 issues of “Nature’s Web”, an online quarterly newsletter on nature and the environment. It also published a collection of colouring books designed specifically for children, along with other educational materials.
The Station ran an annual Environmental Competition for Primary School Children in Munster for 22 years, giving primary schools a further opportunity to focus on the environment through projects and art.
Some Munster schools received our environmental newspaper, “Sherkin Comment”, for a number of years.
EXHIBITIONS
From the early 1980s to the late 1990s, Sherkin Island Marine Station held a number of exhibitions at Connolly Hall, Cork, each attracting approximately 8,000 visitors over the course of a week. The exhibitions featured over 20 tanks displaying marine animals including lobsters, crabs, butterfish, cod, starfish, and anemones.
CONFERENCES & WORKSHOPS
Sherkin Island Marine Station’s annual environmental conferences ran for 25 years, until 2009, attracting speakers from 22 countries around the world.
ANNUAL ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCES
- 1985 – 1st: Ireland – the Atlantic – Exploitation of its Resources.
- 1986 – 2nd: Norway – the Development of its Fish Farming Industry
- 1987 – 3rd: Lake, River and Coastal Pollution – Can it be Contained?
- 1988 – 4th: Domestic and Industrial Waste
- 1989 – 5th: Can Industry and the Environment Live Together?
- 1990 – 6th: Sewage Disposal – Where Do We Stand
- 1991 – 7th: Management of Landfill Sites
- 1992 – 8th: Water – Supply & Quality
- 1993 – 9th: Incineration: The Issues
- 1994 – 10th: Chemicals – A Cause for Concern?
- 1995 – 11th: Environmental Protection: The Role of the State
- 1996 – 12th: Planning Laws: Are they too Severe?
- 1997 – 13th: Hazardous Waste Management – Industrial & Medical
- 1998 – 14th: Environmental Impact Studies – Are they Worthwhile?
- 1999 – 15th: Landfill – The Issues that Must be Addressed
- 2000 – 16th: Water – Is its Quality Deteriorating?
- 2001 – 17th: Infrastructure Development – Can the Environment be Protected?
- 2002 – 18th: Recycling – Expectation & Reality
- 2003 – 19th: Tackling Pollution of Inland and Coastal Waters
- 2004 – 20th: Protecting Our Natural Heritage – What will be our legacy?
- 2005 – 21st: Air Pollution
- 2006 – 22nd: The Cost of Waste Disposal
- 2007 – 23rd: Enforcement of Environmental Regulations
- 2008 – 24th: Water: The Challenges for Users
- 2009 – 25th: Energy from Waste
OTHER CONFERENCES & WORKSHOPS
Sherkin Long-term Monitoring Workshop & Conference 2003:
- “Long-Term Monitoring: Why, What, Where, When & How”
1st Sherkin International Conference 1987:
- The Problems of Toxic Dinoflagellate Blooms in Aquaculture
2nd Sherkin International Conference 1988:
- Wild Salmon – Present and Future
3rd Sherkin International Conference 1989:
- The Problems of Toxic Dinoflagellate Blooms in Aquaculture (Proceedings not published)
4th Sherkin International Conference 1990:
- Fish Farming – the Other Side
Sherkin Workshop 1990:
- The Effects of Stocked Salmon and Cage Escapees on Resident Wild Salmon Stocks
May 1991 Conference:
- The Common Fisheries Policy – Mid-term Review
May 1992 Conference:
- Reduction, Prevention & Re-use of Waste – An Alternative to Landfill
May 1993 Conference:
- Maximum Sustainable Yield from Fish Stocks – A Challenge to Fishermen & Managers
AWARDS
1978 An Taisce award for practical conservation
1982 Honorary Life Member of the Institute for Biology of Ireland
1987 Hall of Fame Award – West Cork Festival
1987 Metropole Award – Cork Speakers Club
1987 Carroll’s West Cork Awards – Enterprise
1990 Environment Merit Award – The Institution of Water & Environment Management of Ireland
1990 Cork and Limerick Savings Bank Award
1991 Dept. of the Environment Awareness Award
1991 Environmental Endeavour Award
1993 October Cork Person of the Month Award
1996 Dept. of the Environment Awareness Awards
1996 Environmental Endeavour Awards (Matt Murphy)
1998 Environmental Endeavour Awards (Audrey Murphy’s School Visits)
1998 Echo Person of the Month (October)
1999 Award Winner in the AIB Better Ireland Awards – A Local & Provincial Winner
1999 ESB Community Awards
2003 Lord Mayor’s Award, Cork City Council
2008 The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management
2013 Cork County Council Mayor’s Community Awards, Western Division
2013 Cork County Council Mayor’s Community Awards, Overall Award
2015 Cork Environmental Forum, Lifetime Achievement Award